Monday, February 07, 2005
"Financial train wreck" can be avoided
[Dave Ranney, "State lawmakers warn of financial 'train wreck'," The Lawrence Journal-World, 6 February 2005.]
At the same time that Florida is being featured in The Wall Street Journal for its budget-saving Medicaid proposal, Kansas policymakers are predicting disaster:
By July 1, 2008 -- three fiscal years from now -- the state's KPERS, KDOT and Medicaid obligations are on track to exceed normal growth in state revenues, leaving little or no money for other increases.
"When you sit down and start looking at the numbers, it's not going to take you very long to see we're heading for a train wreck, regardless of what happens on school finance," said Sen. Dwayne Umbarger, R-Thayer and chairman of the Senate budget committee.
"We can't go on like this," he said. "Something has to happen; either a tax increase, or dipping into the ending balance, or expanded gaming -- something."
Or reform, which brings us to the key phrase this session: "Medicaid is eating us alive."
"Medicaid is going to eat us alive if it keeps going like it is, and if the economy goes stagnant on us, we're sunk," [said Rep. Jerry Henry, D-Atchison].
"The real meltdown is going to come with Medicaid," said House Speaker Doug Mays, R-Topeka. "Medicaid is just eating us alive, and it's only going to get worse."
[Matthew Hisrich, Staying the Course: Medicaid Reform in Kansas, The Flint Hills Center for Public Policy, February 2004.
Stephen A. Moses, "Project Proposal: Controlling Medicaid Long-Term Care Costs," Submitted to Members of the Kansas State Legislature.]
[Dave Ranney, "State lawmakers warn of financial 'train wreck'," The Lawrence Journal-World, 6 February 2005.]
At the same time that Florida is being featured in The Wall Street Journal for its budget-saving Medicaid proposal, Kansas policymakers are predicting disaster:
By July 1, 2008 -- three fiscal years from now -- the state's KPERS, KDOT and Medicaid obligations are on track to exceed normal growth in state revenues, leaving little or no money for other increases.
"When you sit down and start looking at the numbers, it's not going to take you very long to see we're heading for a train wreck, regardless of what happens on school finance," said Sen. Dwayne Umbarger, R-Thayer and chairman of the Senate budget committee.
"We can't go on like this," he said. "Something has to happen; either a tax increase, or dipping into the ending balance, or expanded gaming -- something."
Or reform, which brings us to the key phrase this session: "Medicaid is eating us alive."
"Medicaid is going to eat us alive if it keeps going like it is, and if the economy goes stagnant on us, we're sunk," [said Rep. Jerry Henry, D-Atchison].
"The real meltdown is going to come with Medicaid," said House Speaker Doug Mays, R-Topeka. "Medicaid is just eating us alive, and it's only going to get worse."
[Matthew Hisrich, Staying the Course: Medicaid Reform in Kansas, The Flint Hills Center for Public Policy, February 2004.
Stephen A. Moses, "Project Proposal: Controlling Medicaid Long-Term Care Costs," Submitted to Members of the Kansas State Legislature.]
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